Czech Central Bank Governor Says Bitcoin Could Rise or Go to Zero, Reserve Investment Put on Hold

The Czech National Bank, or CNB, manages about $180 billion in foreign-exchange reserves, equivalent to roughly 44% of the Czech Republic's GDP. Governor Aleš Michl proposed studying a Bitcoin allocation in January 2025, with an upper limit of 5% of reserves under consideration. The move made the CNB one of the first central banks to test Bitcoin in practice and focused attention on whether crypto assets can deliver returns and liquidity while safeguarding public reserves.

The CNB bought Bitcoin at $110,670 on October 30, 2025, creating a $1 million test portfolio that also included a U.S. dollar stablecoin and a tokenized deposit. A February 2026 study found that a 1% Bitcoin allocation could increase expected returns while leaving risk broadly unchanged, but the board still decided not to include it in foreign-exchange reserves for now. On April 28, Michl warned that the price could rise but could also fall to zero, and said the bank would make no further purchases during the evaluation period.